This invention relates to deterrents to terrorism in international shipping. Specifically, the present invention relates to a system and method for determining the end-to-end routing of a shipment from the door of a shipper to the door of a consignee.
FIG. 1 is an overview of the steps in a typical shipping process. Typically, the shipping process begins at Step 1 when the entity or person who is responsible for the initiation of a shipment, known herein as the shipper, loads a container with cargo and seals it. This is currently done with a device such as a tamper-evident lead seal.
In the Step 2, a firm which specializes in arranging transportation and the necessary documentation for export and domestic movements of cargo, known herein as a freight forwarder, obtains a booking record from the shipper. The booking information contained on the record includes a list of the parties to the shipping transaction (e.g. the shipper and the entity or person designated as the recipient of the shipment, identified herein as the consignee) along with the itinerary of the shipment and whether it is an international or domestic shipment.
In Step 3, a firm responsible for moving cargo from one point to another within a country, referred to herein as a domestic carrier, transports the container to the place where the cargo can be loaded onto a vessel, aircraft or other form of international transportation. This location is known as the port of loading. At the port of loading, the domestic carrier typically tenders the container to a steam ship line or airline which will serve as the international carrier.
In Step 4, the international carrier provides a bill of lading and cargo manifest for all bills of lading to government authorities. A bill of lading is a document that is used by international carriers to describe cargo being shipped between two designated points. This can be an inland bill covering domestic moves, an air waybill or similar documentation.
In Step 5, a customs broker makes an import entry. A customs broker is a firm that is licensed by the importing country to issue a customs declaration form that declares the nature of the goods and typically the duties and taxes owed thereon. A customs broker will also arrange for the movement of the goods from the port of entry to the final consignee.
In Step 6, the exporting government may, at its option, review documentation relating to the shipment and pass information to the importing customs authority.
In Step 7, the customs broker or an importer assigns the shipment to a domestic trucker.
In Step 8, the importing customs authority decides whether to inspect the cargo. If inspection is called for, the seal installed in Step 1 is broken and a new seal is installed on the authority of importing customs.
In Step 9, the domestic trucker delivers the shipment to the consignee. If the shipment is successful, the seal installed in Step 1, or its replacement installed in Step 8 of the shipping process is broken in Step 10 by the consignee who receives and inspects the cargo.
An enormous quantity of cargo departs and arrives from international ports worldwide on a daily basis, however only a small percentage of the cargo can be inspected as a practical matter. Therefore, unless carefully monitored at every step, the shipping process introduces a risk to national security, particularly from terrorism.
Current asset management systems attempt to monitor the existence, location and status of items being transported or stored. Such a system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,774,876 to Woolley, et al.
Woolley discloses an asset management system in which uniquely identifiable asset tags are attached to individual shipments. The tags are capable of storing unique identification information as well as data regarding a shipment's origin and destination as well as a signature of the owner of the shipment. The tags are capable of detecting their location and transmitting this information to a remote location for purposes of tracking a shipment en route.
An asset management system such as that disclosed by Woolley provides a workable approach to keep tracking cargo and preventing tampering therewith while in transit. However, the data provided by such systems is insufficient and is not organized in a manner conducive to the prevention of terrorism. Specifically, although the present technology has been applied for tracking, theft management and tamper prevention, these functions have not been effectively integrated and the obtainable data has not been distributable such that oversight of a shipment can be maintained from shipper to consignee without interruption. This problem applies particularly to international shipments, especially those which take place on the high seas, or across multiple national borders before reaching their destination.
Therefore, a need exists for a system which can continuously monitor multiple aspects of the status of a shipment that can be integrated with current shipping processes “door to door” from shipper to consignee across multiple international borders, and in international waters and air space.
A further need exists for a system which will provide international carriers and national governments with accurate information regarding the location and contents of shipments in transit to assist government authorities to determine if cargo should be inspected.
A further need exists for a cargo tracking system which generates an efficient routing guide based upon the origin and destinations of the shipment to allow the system to notify authorities of any deviation from logical routes.